Mee’s agony as he couldn’t see his baby in hospital
Defender reflects on tough year
WHILE keeping Burnley in the Premier League is important to captain Ben Mee, it is not the most important fight he has faced in 2020.
Mee had to contend with every parent’s worst nightmare when baby Olive was born four months prematurely in May, weighing just 1lb 2ozs.
Adding to the difficulties, Covid restrictions meant there were periods when he was not allowed to visit wife Sarah or their new daughter in hospital as the little one fought for her life.
Mercifully, Olive returned to live at home in September where she met her two-year-old brother and she continues to improve, though remaining on oxygen to aid her progress.
‘I’ve learned plenty about myself, definitely,’ said 31-year-old Mee about his ordeal. ‘It’s been a tough year for everyone and emotional in general for me. I think I’m proud of myself, I’m still looking after my little girl so I’ll reflect more in years to come.
‘Olive was born after 24 weeks, very early. I’d never experienced anything like it before and it put everything else into perspective; football, everyday life, the lot.
‘It was hard with the restrictions and guidelines and of course a little girl in the midst of it. It was just a case of trying to get her and my family through it.
‘We had the conversation with doctors [about Olive’s prospects] and of course it was difficult. Luckily we got to a point where they could do their work.
‘Thankfully it’s worked out OK and she’s doing really well now. She came back the day before she was actually due to be born. It was a big moment for her to meet Jaxon, an emotional day. She is on oxygen but we’d have taken that at the beginning. Hopefully she will be coming off it soon.’
Football was an escape. Mee continued to serve Burnley admirably during his crisis, boosted by the support he received from manager Sean Dyche.
Burnley finished 10th in last season’ s delayed campaign. Though they are in the bottom three going into today’s game at Arsenal, Mee’s return from injury has coincided with an upturn.
His personal and professional life converged in dramatic fashion on June 22 when he played at the Etihad close to St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester where Olive was being cared for. As club skipper, Mee made headlines around the world that night when he said he was ‘ashamed and embarrassed’ by a plane hired by a Burnley fan that trailed the banner ‘ White Lives Matter’ over the stadium.
But few knew Mee had also held poignant conversations that night with Manchester City captain David Silva, whose son Mateo was born prematurely.
‘Olive was in hospital about 10 minutes away from the stadium. It was still early for us, six weeks in, so to speak to someone like David who had gone through it was good,’ said Mee.
‘I didn’t know many people who’d had that experience and I wanted to know how David’s son was doing because you never know what is going to happen.
‘David was reassuring. He told me Mateo was two years old and a normal young boy and that was nice to hear. It was good to speak to him.’
Football proved an important outlet. ‘ Training and those 90 minutes on t he pitch were a massive relief at a time when you couldn’t see friends or family. I was just going home and coming back and going to the hospital.
‘ Being able to speak to teammates and people face to face, that was massive for me. The lads wished me well and asked how things were going.’
Dyche’s side have lost only one of their four matches since Mee returned to the centre of defence after a t orn quad. They had previously taken one point from six matches without him.
We’ve got a big month coming up, a lot to cram in, but I’m very confident we will pick up results,’ added Mee, confidently.
‘People will be glad to see the back of 2020 but I had my little girl. It’s ended well, but it has been a rollercoaster for sure.’